Cañada College expands the Working Families Success Network strategy
Thu, 28 August, 2014 at 11:02 am
Jose A. Garcia, Cañada College
Phone:
(650) 306-3211
Lauren
Lewis, Achieving the Dream
Phone:
(917) 613-6419 (cell)
|
Achieving
the Dream Announces the Selection of Cañada College for the National Community
College Expansion of the Working Families Success Network Strategy
Cañada College commits to implementing the WFSN strategy to support more low-income students and their families achieve their academic and financial goals
Redwood
City, CA (Aug. 28, 2014) –Achieving the Dream today announced a national community college expansion of the
Working Families Success Network (WFSN) strategy. Cañada College
is one of 16 community colleges in four states that will
implement the strategy — used at over 100 sites in the nation to help
low-income individuals and families achieve financial stability — to promote postsecondary
completion for students whose economic challenges can thwart their academic and
career goals.
The WFSN strategy involves intentionally integrating and
sequencing three distinct but related services:
- Education
and employment advancement—education,
job readiness, training, and placement;
- Income
and work supports—access to student financial aid, public
benefits, tax credits, and free tax assistance; and
- Financial services and asset building—financial
education and coaching linked to affordable products and services to help families build
self-sufficiency, stabilize their finances, and become more economically
competitive.
“This program provides us the opportunity to serve
the comprehensive needs of our students, providing greater assurance of their
academic success.” Larry Buckley –
President of Cañada College
Cañada College
was selected through a competitive application process that assessed the commitment to racial equity and poverty
reduction as well as the college’s demonstrated ability to support student
success using data-informed decision-making.
This
effort is supported with funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Bank of
America Charitable Foundation, Lumina Foundation, MetLife Foundation, and the
W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
“Our goal is to support students who have already
taken a big step toward their long-term financial success by addressing the
short-term economic challenges that can get in their way,” said Rosa Maria
Castañeda, a senior associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation. “This expansion
builds on the momentum behind the Working Families Success Network strategy as
well as the efforts of colleges across the country to find smarter ways to help
low-income students cross the finish line.”
Through
this work, Achieving the Dream seeks to demonstrate that embedding the WFSN
strategy in community college culture and systems can be cost effective and
improve student outcomes and financial stability. The goal is for the
intentional integration and sequencing of services – which evidence suggests
make a difference in whether a student thrives or languishes – to become the
routine way colleges support low-income students and their families.
"Through the expansion of the WFSN strategy in
community colleges, we expect to learn more about the power of bundling or
coupling services needed by low-income students with family responsibilities,”
said Carol Lincoln, Senior Vice President of Achieving the Dream.
"Colleges that have pioneered this strategy have seen increases of
10-15 percent in term-to-term retention. Since financial challenges are
the most frequently given reason students drop out, new solutions are needed
for helping students persist and complete credentials. WFSN colleges will
produce new lessons about the mix, intensity, and delivery of critical services
that can help close achievement gaps and keep students on pathways to
completion and careers."
Arkansas Consortium
|
California Consortium
|
Virginia Consortium
|
Washington Consortium
|
Arkansas
Association of Two-Year Colleges
|
California
Community College Chancellor’s Office
|
Virginia
Community College System
|
Washington
Board of Community and Technical Colleges
|
College
of the Ouachitas (Malvern, Ark.)
|
Cabrillo
College
(Aptos,
Calif.)
|
Danville
Community College (Danville, Va.)
|
Big
Bend Community College
(Moses
Lake, Wash.)
|
East
Arkansas Community College (Forrest City, Ark.)
|
Cañada College (Redwood City,
Calif.)
|
Eastern
Shore Community College (Melfa, Va.)
|
Clark
Community College (Vancouver, Wash.)
|
North
Arkansas Community College (Harrison, Ark.)
|
Porterville
College (Porterville, Calif.)
|
Northern
Virginia Community College (Springfield, Va.)
|
Highline
Community College
(Des
Moines, Wash.)
|
Phillips
Community College of the University of Arkansas (Helena, Ark.)
|
Skyline
College
(San
Bruno, Calif.)
|
Patrick
Henry Community College (Martinsville, Va.)
|
Walla
Walla Community College
(Walla
Walla, Wash.)
|
For more
information about the national community college expansion of the WFSN strategy,
please visit www.achievingthedream.org/resources/initiatives/working-families-success-network.
For more
information about the Working Families Success Network, please visit www.workingfamiliessuccess.org.
###
Cañada College, situated in
the heart of the Silicon Valley, offers outstanding programs in the sciences,
business, multi-media, medical assisting, the arts, and technical training
among others. With nearly 50 years of service providing enriching and
life-changing opportunities for the residents of San Mateo County, Cañada
College provides our community with a learning-centered environment. We ensure
that students from diverse backgrounds have the opportunity to achieve their
educational goals by providing lifelong learning and transfers to 4-year
Universities. Home to numerous clubs, student organizations, and
inter-collegiate athletic teams for men and women, Cañada College is committed
to being a preeminent institution of learning. To share in the experience,
please learn more about us on the Internet at canadacollege.edu, and follow us @Facebook.com/canadacollegeRWC. “From here,
you can go anywhere.”
Achieving the Dream, Inc. is a national
nonprofit that is dedicated to helping more community college students,
particularly low-income students and students of color, stay in school and earn
a college certificate or degree. Evidence-based, student-centered, and built on
the values of equity and excellence, Achieving the Dream is closing achievement
gaps and accelerating student success nationwide by: 1) guiding evidence-based
institutional improvement, 2) leading policy change, 3) generating knowledge,
and 4) engaging the public. Conceived as an initiative in 2004 by Lumina
Foundation and seven founding partner organizations, today, Achieving the Dream
is leading the most comprehensive non-governmental reform network for student
success in higher education history. With over 200 institutions, more than 100
coaches and advisors, and 15 state policy teams - working throughout 34 states
and the District of Columbia – the Achieving the Dream National Reform Network
helps nearly 4 million community college students have a better chance of
realizing greater economic opportunity and achieving their dreams.
The
Annie E. Casey Foundation is a private philanthropy that creates
a brighter future for the nation’s children by developing solutions to
strengthen families, build paths to economic opportunity and transform
struggling communities into safer and healthier places to live, work and grow.
Bank of America Corporate Social
Responsibility Bank
of America’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a strategic
part of doing business globally. Our CSR efforts guide how we operate in a
socially, economically, financially and environmentally responsible way around
the world, to deliver for shareholders, customers, clients and
employees. Our goal is to help create economically vibrant regions and
communities through lending, investing and giving. By partnering with our
stakeholders, we create value that empowers individuals and communities to
thrive and contributes to the long-term success of our business. We have
several core areas of focus for our CSR, including responsible business
practices; environmental sustainability; strengthening local communities with a
focus on housing, hunger and jobs; investing in global leadership development;
and engaging through arts and culture. As part of these efforts, employee
volunteers across the company contribute their time, passion and expertise to
address issues in communities where they live and work. Learn more at www.bankofamerica.com/about and follow us on Twitter at
@BofA_Community.
Lumina Foundation, an Indianapolis-based private foundation, is committed to enrolling
and graduating more students from college—especially 21st century
students: low-income students, students of color, first-generation students and
adult learners. Lumina’s goal is to increase the percentage of Americans
who hold high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by 2025. Lumina
pursues this goal in three ways: by identifying and supporting effective
practice, through public policy advocacy, and by using our communications and
convening power to build public will for change.
MetLife
Foundation
was created in 1976 to continue MetLife’s long tradition of corporate
contributions and community involvement. Since its founding through the end of
2013, MetLife Foundation has provided more than $600 million in grants and $70
million in program-related investments to organizations addressing issues that
have a positive impact in their communities. Today, the Foundation is dedicated
to advancing financial inclusion, committing $200 million over the next five
years to help build a secure future for individuals and communities around the
world.
W.K.
Kellogg Foundation (WKKF),
founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal
pioneer Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in
the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal
opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for
vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work
and life.
The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle
Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as
well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places
where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face
significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in
Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in
Mexico and Haiti.